The invention relates to a connecting element and to a connecting arrangement.
From prior art, numerous possible connections for connecting two tubes or other hollow bodies through which fluids can flow are known. Often, Luer Lock connectors are employed, some of which provided with a union nut for screw connecting. Such connectors seal via the contact surface between the outside of a conically formed inner cone and the outside of a likewise conically formed outer cone. A thread is here provided around the inner cone into which the outer cone can be screwed by means of a correspondingly formed protrusion. Additionally, such Luer Lock connectors can be locked by a union nut in order to prevent an unintentional opening. The inner cone is here also referred to as male Luer Lock fitting and the outer cone as female Luer Lock fitting.
What is problematic when forming such a connection by means of a Luer Lock connector is the insufficient tightness of such connections on the one hand, and, on the other hand, the small inside diameter of the male Luer Lock fitting predefined by the standard, which is 2:5 mm. Due to such a small inside diameter, the fluid flow rate through an entire system in which such a Luer Lock connector is employed is considerably limited.
In numerous instruments through which fluids flow such a limitation on the fluid flow is of no great importance, because the inside diameter of other tubes used in such instruments is even smaller. However, particularly with instruments which gases flow through higher fluid flow rates would be most desirable. For example, trocars offer a considerably larger inside diameter so that in systems in which trocars are employed the classic Luer Lock connections regularly represent a bottleneck that determines the fluid flow of the entire system.
From DE 35 03 562 A1 a crimp connector for the airtight connection of a tube, particularly of a drainage tube, is known. This drainage tube is, according to this German Patent Application, not connected with a Luer Lock fitting, but instead is housed in the crimp connector without such a fitting.